Usage note

color

[kuhl-er]

noun

the quality of an object or substance with respect to light reflected by the object, usually determined visually by measurement of hue, saturation, and brightness of the reflected light; saturation or chroma; hue.

the natural appearance of the skin, especially of the face; complexion: She has a lovely color.

a ruddy complexion: The wind and sun had given color to the sailor's face.

a blush: His remarks brought the color to her face.

vivid or distinctive quality, as of a literary work: Melville's description of a whaling voyage is full of color.

details in description, customs, speech, habits, etc., of a place or period: The novel takes place in New Orleans and contains much local color.

something that is used for coloring; pigment; paint; tint; dye.

background information, as anecdotes about players or competitors or analyses of plays, strategy, or performance, given by a sportscaster to heighten interest in a sportscast.

colors,

any distinctive color or combination or pattern of colors, especially of a badge, ribbon, uniform, or the like, worn or displayed as a symbol of or to identify allegiance to, membership in, or sponsorship by a school, group, or organization.

nature, viewpoint, or attitude; character; personality: His behavior in a crisis revealed his true colors.

a flag, ensign, etc., particularly the national flag.

U.S. Navy.the ceremony of hoisting the national flag at 8 a.m. and of lowering it at sunset.

skin complexion of a particular people or ethnic group, especially when other than white: a person of color; people of color; a man of color; alumni of color; children of color.

outward appearance or aspect; guise or show: It was a lie, but it had the color of the truth.

a trace or particle of valuable mineral, especially gold, as shown by washing auriferous gravel.

Physics. any of the labels red, green, or blue that designate the three states in which quarks are expected to exist, or any of the corresponding labels for antiquark states.Compare quantum chromodynamics, quark model.

Printing. the amount of ink used.

Heraldry. a tincture other than a fur or metal, usually including gules, azure, vert, sable, and purpure.

For sense evolution, cf. Sanskrit varnah "covering, color," related to vrnoti "covers," and also see chroma. Meaning "visible color, color of something" is attested in English from c.1300. As "color as a property of things," from late 14c. Old English words for "color" were hiw ("hue"), bleo.

color

The sensation produced by the effect of light waves striking the retina of the eye. The color of something depends mainly on which wavelengths of light it emits, reflects, or transmits.

Color charge. See also hadron.

A Closer Look: When beams of colored light are mixed, or added, their wavelengths combine to form other colors. All spectral colors can be formed by mixing wavelengths corresponding to the additive primaries red, green, and blue. When two of the additive primaries are mixed in equal proportion, they form the complement of the third. Thus cyan (a mixture of green and blue) is the complement of red; magenta (a mixture of blue and red) is the complement of green; and yellow (a mixture of red and green) is the complement of blue. Mixing the three additive primaries in equal proportions reconstitutes white light. When light passes through a color filter, certain wavelengths are absorbed, or subtracted, while others are transmitted. The subtractive primaries cyan, magenta, and yellow can be combined using overlapping filters to form all other colors. When two of the subtractive primaries are combined in equal proportion, they form the additive primary whose wavelength they share. Thus overlapping filters of cyan (blue and green) and magenta (blue and red) filter out all wavelengths except blue; magenta (blue and red) and yellow (red and green) transmit only red; and yellow (red and green) and cyan (blue and green) transmit only green. Combining all three subtractive primaries in equal proportions filters out all wavelengths, producing black. Light striking a colored surface behaves similarly to light passing through a filter, with certain wavelengths being absorbed and others reflected. Pigments are combined to form different colors by a process of subtractive absorption of various wavelengths.